Kerala Blasters to finalise five Indian signings as Al Fursan takeover begins
Kerala Blasters are set to complete the signings of five Indian players and extend defender Aiban Dohling’s contract in India ahead of the Indian Super League 2026-27 season, Khel Now revealed on September 30, 2026. The club is working to finalise paperwork so the group can join pre-season under head coach Ashley Westwood.
The recruits named by Khel Now are Mohammed Sanan, Amrinder Singh, Sahil Tavora, Ramhlunchhunga and Mohammed Yasir, while Dohling is already at the club and is due to sign a new contract. The recruitment push follows an ownership change: UAE-based consortium Al Fursan acquired 100 per cent of the club from Magnum Group, an acquisition announced on September 29, 2026. Al Fursan is led by Sheikh Ahmad bin Faisal Al Qasimi, with Dr Dunston Pereira as director and Ofioh Sports as its operational partner. Until the takeover completed, the Blasters had been the only ISL club yet to make a signing for the new season.
Mohammed Sanan is the most sought-after of the group and is set to move from Jamshedpur under a three-year contract worth around ₹75 lakh a year after the Tata Group agreed to pay approximately ₹80 lakh to settle the remaining two years of his Jamshedpur contract. Sanan has made 57 league appearances with 43 starts and seven goals across three seasons at Jamshedpur, played 13 matches in 2025-26 scoring twice — both in a 4-1 win over Chennaiyin FC inside the opening 58 minutes — and was named in India’s squad for the friendlies against Brazil, Panama and Uruguay.
Sahil Tavora arrives with extensive ISL experience from Mumbai City, Hyderabad FC, Punjab FC and FC Goa, having made 109 league appearances with four goals and two assists. At FC Goa in 2025-26 he played eight matches, starting seven, and scored once in a 2-0 win over Mumbai City in April. Tavora’s notable previous encounter with Kerala Blasters came in the 2021-22 ISL final when he scored an 88th-minute equaliser for Hyderabad FC; that match went to extra time and a shootout, which Hyderabad won 3-1 to claim their first ISL title.
Amrinder Singh’s ISL career includes spells at Mumbai City, Bengaluru FC, ATK Mohun Bagan (now Mohun Bagan Super Giant) and Odisha FC, and he was central to Mumbai City’s 2020-21 League Winners Shield and title double with 10 clean sheets in 23 matches. For Odisha in 2025-26 he featured in eight matches, playing all 720 minutes, kept one clean sheet and made 16 saves. The 25-year-old winger arrives from Sporting Club Delhi, the club he joined as Hyderabad FC in 2022.
Ramhlunchhunga progressed through Aizawl FC, making his professional debut in January 2020 against Gokulam Kerala and recording 32 matches and three goals for Aizawl. A loan to Sreenidi Deccan in 2022-23 produced two goals and six assists in 22 league games; he made his ISL debut in November 2023 and scored his first ISL goal three months later against Bengaluru FC, and has since made 44 ISL appearances scoring five. Mohammed Yasir has been in the ISL since 2017-18 with spells at Hyderabad FC, FC Pune City and FC Goa, totaling 114 league appearances, 10 goals and 14 assists; he made 10 appearances for FC Goa in 2025-26 and scored once before moving to train with the club’s reserves.
Aiban Dohling has 93 ISL appearances and three goals across spells with FC Goa and Kerala Blasters and featured in nine matches for the Blasters in 2025-26, playing 634 minutes; he is set to sign a new contract rather than arrive as a new signing. Head coach Ashley Westwood took charge in March 2026, replacing David Català and led the club through the end of the 2025-26 campaign. The ISL 2026-27 season begins on October 10, with Kerala Blasters opening their campaign away to Inter Kashi on October 11 at 5:00 PM IST; their first home game at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi is on October 25 against Mumbai City FC, and the club faces a condensed window to register the new players before the season starts.